The Influence of Annealing Thermal on the Properties of Au:TiO2 Nanocomposite Film

Abstract

Two sets of nanocomposite films consisting of different atomic concentrations of Au dispersed in a TiO2 dielectric matrix were deposited by DC reactive magnetron sputtering, and subjected to several annealing trataments in vacuum, for temperatures ranging from 300 to 800 0C. The obtained results show that the structure and the size of Au clusters, together with the matrix crystallinity, changed as a result of the annealing As a result of these structural variations the film optical properties were modified too. The optical changes, and the correspondent Surface Plasmon Resonance effect were confirmed by reflectivity and CIELab colour measurements. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of gold in all the samples, and the crystallization of the TiO2 matrix for the samples annealed at temperatures above 4000C. With further increase of the annealing temperature, there is a change from the TiO2 anatase phase into rutile-type structure. Simultaneously, the Au atoms are organized in crystalline nanoparticles (revealing an fcc-type structure, with the (111) preferential growth orientation). When you are citing the document, use the following link http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/34916